A ninja strikes when the time is right
by Niamhako
Summary: Konoha's in chaos. Akatsuki have invaded and the place is in turmoil. Sakura has her own squad to help her But, badly injured and determined to keep helping people, she runs into an angel. The only one who can help her, but the last person she wants to se


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A ninja strikes when the time is right

(For anyone who reads my other fic-Eye Contact-it'll be a while before I can update it. I'm off to Whitby tomorrow, and November is national novel writing month-details can be found on . So, yes, I'm busy. This is just a one shot to keep up my obsessive need to write at least enough until I can think of an awesome new idea for some existing fics. It's ridiculously long, so you can sink your teeth into it. So here we go!  
I am in desperate need of a Beta. If you're interested, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE I AM SHAMELESSLY BEGGING YOU, PM me.)

Summary-Konoha's in chaos. Akatsuki have invaded and the place is in turmoil. Sakura's in charge of her own medical squad. But, badly injured and determined to keep helping people, she runs into an angel. The only one who can help her, but the last person she wants to see.

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Frowning over her cup of tea, (a good, British solution to any problem) Sakura leaned further towards the seemingly random number code in front of her. There was something in the numbers, some sort of pattern, she could see quite clearly but she couldn't put her finger on. She jumped so violently at the sound of the crashing outside that she very nearly spilled the tea and lost the code completely. Cursing, she sat the cup down and raced to the window after Shikamaru. Smoke was billowing in a dense grey cloud and there was screaming. Lots of screaming.

"Get the Hokage," she said, in as calm a voice as she could manage. The distinct sound of screaming echoed from outside and her hands itched to perform the relatively simple healing techniques that would be required. "There seems to be some sort of summoning gone wrong."

Nodding, Shikamaru left the girl to her own devices. Which involved leaping from the window into the panicking crowd below. A high pitched scream broke over the rucuss, and Sakura looked behind her to see a young girl being trampled by the stampede of terrified civilians. What looked like a giant centipede was chasing the people, and more and more innocent lives were being lost as the beast advanced closer.

Leaping to the surrounding buildings, Sakura raced along the walls of houses to where the small girl was being stampeded. In a fluid motion, Sakura lifted the girl onto her left shoulder and punched the creature with her right fist. It flew back easily-it had been lighter than she'd thought-and Sakura was immediately chasing it, determined to finish it off. The girl on her shoulder gasped in wonder as the kunoichi leaped onto the centipede and, with a resounding _crack _drove her fist into its skull.

Sakura smiled. Danger over. From what she could see, no one was badly hurt. She surveyed the girl, looking for injuries. There was only one. On her knee, where a deep gash had opened. Healing it with a light tap, she rose, only to be cut off by a panicked Iruka.

"Sakura, we're under attack!" He gasped hurredly, "Akatsuki, they're after Naruto!"

"Naru-"

"Kakashi's fighting their leader-where are you going?" He stared at her hastily retreating form.

"Kaka-sensei's fighting him? He killed Jiraiya, Iruka! Kakashi needs help!" She stared at him as he grabbed her wrists. Was he trying to protect her? Surely he realised that in any sparring match, she's beat him without too much of a struggle.

"People are injured, Sakura. I just took one man to hospital, he..." Iruka broke off clearly disgusted by the memory, "he was speaking in tongues...drooling...it was horrible."

About to protest that insanity and death would be better than sitting around waiting for the grass to grow, Sakura's usually brilliant mind finally cottoned on. Nodding, she turned away from the explosions and screaming and headed towards the center of Konoha-to the Hokage tower and hospital.

She arrived in time to see Ino and Chouji running towards the destruction, to help their fathers. Hinata's shyness had all but vanished as she helped her team mates formulate a plan of attack. Neji, Tenten and Lee had dispersed completely, shouting messages to each other through their wirelesses.

Sakura was alone, teamless. She knew that Shikamaru would be helping Kurenai, who would be capably defending herself through genjutsu. Sasuke was, of course, prowling around with his new team looking for innocents to butcher. Naruto wouls be training, blissfully oblivious to everything going on here. Kakashi was at the center of it all, fighting the madman determindly, with the aid of every determined shinobi in konoha. Tsunade and Shizune would be interrogating and healing.

But she was alone. Alone as the crowd of injured civilians and shinobi rushed passed her to seek medical attention. With a sigh, she stepped onto the secretary's desk and drew in a deep breath.

"Quiet!" She shouted above the ruckus. "All of you!" With the attention of everyone in the wing, she quickly scanned around the injured. Out of everyone there, two people seemed injured enough to die. "Can everyone with some sort of disease or sickness wait in room 303. Everyone with a head injury wait in room 304. Everyone with a broken, fractured, or sprained bone wait in room 305. Any patients suffering from stab wounds, wait in room 306. If any limbs have been severed or and bones have been crushed, then wait in room 307. Will all doctors please organise yourselves into the respective rooms. Anyone who isn't sure of their condition, or if your condition doesn't fall into these categories, then stay here and ask one of the nurses to diagnose you, and if it's complicated somehow, then come to me in room 307. Please be as quiet and calm as possible, it may take several hours before you are seen to."

Leaping from the desk, she hurried to room 307 before pulling the two vitally injured shinobi towards her for immediate treatment. The pair, obviously partners from the way they silently communicated with each other, had both received a powerful kick to the chest that had crushed several ribs. After healing and discharging the men, who would soon be injured again anyway, she turned to the academy student who's hand had been ripped of. He wasn't crying, nor had he fainted, but it was clear that he was in shock. Stemming the blood flow and gently knocking him unconcious, she handed him to his uninjured friend and told her to take him to the pediatrics ward to lie down.

The cue was long, more and more people were entering the hospital. With a scan round the place, she knew that a lot of the cases wouldn't be treated. These, she would ask to wait in room 401, which basicly represented that they were done for. They would wait there with eachother until they realised that no one was coming to help them. Until they accepted their fate.

It had been two hours. She had seen 85 patients. 20 of them couldn't be helped. In total, the doctors in room 307 had seen and treated 239 patients. 150 had survived. The line was dying down. Almost every civilian in Konoha had either been treated and/or moved by ANBU to a secure location, or had been killed. The hospital had seen over 1000 civilian injuries in the west ward alone, and it was unlikely that the other wards and hospitals were having an easier time.

"I'll take over, Sakura-chan," the young doctor, Katsuya, who Sakura had trained herself a few months ago, appeared behind her. "You want to go and help in the battle, yes?" Nodding, Sakura steeped away from her apprentice. He was, after all, one of the few people in this hospital that she could completely trust to heal broken bones straight, and his judgement was generally very good. Plus, he was right. She was desperate to help Kakashi-sensei. And Ino-pig. And the rest of her comrades who could be dead or dying.

"Sakura!" Shizune was running towards her frantically. "I've assembled a team of 5 medical-ninja. They're in room 165. You're in charge of them. Help whoever can't make it to the hospital." Nodding, she sprinted away. She didn't need to ask who her team was. Hanabi Hyuga, Hana Inuzaka, Aiko Abarame, Shinji Ogasawa and Riku Sugimura were the best paramedics they had. No words were exchanged. No questions were asked. The 3 men and 2 women followed Sakura wordlessly, sprinting over the rubble of the hospital entrance and towards the rapid explosions that were occurring near the Hokage monument.

There was blood everywhere. Her fallen comrades and enemies littered the ground around her. She ignored the corpes. They wouldn't be coming back anytime soon.

"Argh-" wincing with the pain that erupted from the back of her head, Sakura froze. Behind her, gripping onto her skull with and iron grip, stood what appeared to be a woman. But the creature, distorted and pierced all over with black studs, bore only the semblance of a human. Its long, blood stained fingers slotted through the short pink locks painfully, and Sakura bitterly remembered the last time that this had happened. The time when she had first bee proud to call herself a shinobi. This was likely to be the last time.

"Where is Uzumaki Naruto?" The bitter acceptance left her completely as her best friend's name was mentioned. Instead, she was filled with a dark, looming purpose. A sense of self. She would not allow herself to be killed. Not while these people roamed around, attempting to kill her friend. She would not be a hindrance. Reminded so strongly of every defining moment she'd had as a ninja-of cutting her hair in the forest of death, of wearing her headband around her forehead in her fight with Ino, of approaching Tsunade to ask for training, of pulling out the explosive tag when fighting Sasori, of deciding to attack Sasuke in order to defend Naruto...everything that had made her who she was.

"I'm waiting..." The voice was soft and gentle, serving to fuel the black fire beneath. her.

"He-he is..." She took a deep breath and prepared herself. "He's up your arse and around the corner," she stated calmly, twisting out of the woman-thing's grip and shearing her locks with her kunai. The cold pricked at the back of her neck but she ignored it. The battle was ahead of her. What could only be a variation of Pein-animal realm, from what she'd deciphered from Jiraiya's could-loomed before her. She had to find Kakashi. She had to help the injured she had to-

_Crack_

Rather than her punch disabling The Thing, the twisted creature easily caught her attack and seemed to-grow stronger from it...?

This was bad. It had absorbed her attack. In a similar way to Hidan's forbidden technique, hurting this creature would do more damage to her. Not the most ideal of situations.

U-oh!

The thing leapt towards her, katanna drawn. Somehow, Sakura managed to parry the blow with her kunai, dislocating her wrist. It drew the sword round, aiming for her exposed solarplexes.

_Not good not good not good..._

It stopped. Inexplicably, impossibly, the creature froze. Were its piercings...glowing...?

Of course! The many piercings worn by Pein's techniques somehow allowed them to communicate with eachother. And apparently recieve orders too. Which, in this case, meant fantastic news for her.

"Well, Haruno Sakura," it stated formally, "it was an honour to fight with you. If I could afford to spare you, I would love to work with you on your sword skills." The katanna swung.

Black.

The world swam before her.

She was dying and she knew it.

If it wasn't for the last second rush of chakra she'd sent to cushion the blow to her side, she'd be dead already.

A scary thought.

She closed her eyes.

Her hip was on fire. It burned. It burned so badly.

Hands seemed to be lifting her.

Angels.

To carry her up to heaven.

No.

Heaven was for civilians.

Heaven was for humans.

Shinobi belonged elsewhere.

Further down.

Where she'd end up.

So it was a human.

A human to heal her.

A human to fail.

She'd slip away.

Away.

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"She's waking up." The voice, indistinct and hazy, sounded over her blurred consciousness. Why were they speaking like that? Almost as though they were speaking through a faulty wireless.

No, that was just her wasn't it? Everything was hazy to her. The pain of the wound, nullified under some heavy morphine, barely registered to her tired brain.

Were her hands bound? What a strange thing to do. It dawned on her vaguely confused mind the they were talking about her. They? How many were there? Surely not too many. Sitting around waiting for her to wake up...?

"She's disorientated," a different voice put in, sounding interested. "How much did you heal her Karin?"

"I didn't," the high pitched voice of Karin put in, sounding confused, "I thought it was you."

"No, I'm not a medic. How about you Suigetsu?"

Karin's soft snort told Sakura that the female of the group doubted the idea.

"That idiot being able to use medical ninjutsu? It's a skill reserved for the best!"

"Hmph, well even you know some right Karin?" The first voice, Suigetsu, pointed out. "So it must be pretty basic. No Juugo, I didn't heal her."

As the inevitable squabble between Suigetsu and Karin comenced, Sakura's eyes fluttered open.

Her hands were wrenched behind her back and she was lying on the ground. Judging from her cold, cramped muscles, she'd been in this position for a while now. Her chakra was drained, but only through the over usage during the day. She hadn't been harmed at all by her captors and apparently her tied hands were their only way of restraining her.

She rolled into a sitting position, surveying her surroundings carefully. She was in front of a camp fire, the three others around the opposite side. They were in a tiny clearing in the woods outside of Konoha. Four packs lay a few feet away, guarded by a primitive trap of chicken wire and explosive tags.

Not the best idea, she thought with dry amusment, if a squirrel picks at them, their entire contents will be lost. About to make up her mind about the three idiots in front of her, Sakura noticed three very strange things.

The first was that there were more packs than people, which meant that one of their members had gone to scout for food. But not one of them had suggested that this mystery-nin (for they were certainly all ninja) had healed her. Why not?

Secondly, she saw the seals on the packs. Very complex seals that protected the packs from fire and water. So one of their members was very very skilled with chakra control. And yet, they all seemed to doubt eachother's capacity as medical ninja.

Thirdly, she noticed that the front of her shirt was singed. The fire had obviously lashed out and set fire to her clothing. But the boot mark was small, not the wide, flat foot of Suigetsu or Juugo. And Karin was wearing sandals, not boots. So the fourth party had obviously been there to stamp out her burning clothing.

Quietly, she pulled out a kunai and cut her bonds

Of course, if the ridiculous trio had stopped arguing for long enough to notice the very conscious, now unbound, kunoichi in their wake, she could have told them that she'd subconsciously healed her self, a lovely side affect for powerful medical ninja. She found it highly unlikely that any of them knew medical ninjutsu, so she just sat and waited for the fourth ninja to return. May as well get a grip on their personalities, she reasoned.

"And anyway, Suigetsu, if you were a half decent Poker player, then you'd have accepted that challenge instead of-"

The red head stopped and drew a sharp gasp.

"Hello Sasuke-kun, did you find anyone around?"

Sakura stiffened. As she had every right too. The squeaky-voiced woman drooling over the sudden appearance of the man named Sasuke. It had to be...

But it couldn't be. He was too perfect, too unflawed, to amazing to be hanging arounf with a redhaired skank and her groupies-

"Hn."

Yep. Sasuke. The arrogant prick of team seven has entered the building. Joy to us all...

"Hakate Kakashi is injured, a mile or so from here. He didn't see me. Why is she unbound?"

Ignoring the last part and the angry gasps of realisation from her 'captors', Sakura turned to her former team mate.

"How hurt is he? Will he reach Konoha safely? Damn it Uchiha, I appreciate the fact that you don't give a rat's ass, but I need to help him-"

She broke off only because his face appeared inches from hers. She didn't blink. She'd been expecting it.

"We tied you up, Sakura. You're not any more. How did you get loose?" He was completely ignoring her questions. Damn him.

"An kunai, Uchiha, I'm a shinobi you know. Now where's Kaka-"

"I'm aware that you're a shinobi Sakura, albeit a fairly pathetic excuse for one. Kakashi's fine, Yamanaka Ino has found him and is seeing to him."

"Ino? Ugh, there's a reason I told her to stick to torture and interrogation, as a medic she's average at best. Must I do everything myself?"

_She's completely forgotten about all of us, _Juugo thought, half amused, half admiring. _This Kakashi fellow, he must be important to her. Where's she going?_

True enough, Sakura had risen to her feet, ignoring the protests of Karin and Suigetsu.

"Where are you going Sakura?" Sasuke asked, exasperated.

"I don't trust Pig's medical abilities as far as I can throw her," she said flatly, "albeit that's a fair distance. I'm going to see to Kakashi, he was fighting the man who killed _Jiraiya. _I'm making sure he's okay."

"You know, I expected a bit of a more dramatic reaction to you seeing me," he pointed out, amused, "after all, you and Naruto have spent a fair amount of time looking."

"If it's a choice between helping Kakashi, who may be in a life threatening situation, and staying with a traitor who would clearly prefer to be in better company, then the choice is easy." She stated dryly. "Or would you rather I were sobbing right now and clutching your chest? Plus, Pig may be okay, but what about the rest of her team? Tsunade? Naruto? Everyone else? I'm leaving now Sasuke, I don't even know why I'm here in the first-"

"The Hokage is dead." He may as well have punched her. "She was fighting Leader-sama. She defeated him, but at a cost. Naruto helped. He's fine. The other people who graduated with us are fine, apart from Abarame Shino who's injuries are serious. Shizune is working on him, but there are no guarantees."

Evidently, Karin was enjoying Sakura's reaction to the news. A dark chuckle escaped her lips as she watched the pale faced medic. From the moment Sasuke had mentioned Tsunade, she had been shaking.

Dead...?

Shishou...?

No...

Yes.

She had known, ever since the news of Jiraiya's death had reached Konoha, that Tsunade would follow.

But still. It was Tsunade. Training her in a way that almost killed her...downing what seemed like gallons of sake...cursing about Naruto's stupidity...cursing Shikamaru's laziness...calmly assessing patients...gently teasing injured shinobi...Tsunade...

"Sakura?" His voice wasn't concerned, merely curious. He had never seen that look on her face. Emerald eyes blazing, lips drawn tigh, everything about her body position simply screaming anger and pain...

"I'm leaving," she said flatly. "I need to see Shizune...and Kakashi...and Shikamaru. I need to heal people and decipher that bloody code. It was nice to see you again Sasuke."

Startled, the team watched as the kunoichi raced off with chakra that she shouldn't, by rights, have left. In the completely wrong direction...

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He found her perched on a tree branch, her position disguised under heavy genjutsu. Her legs were drawn into her chest, her shoulder's slumped, her head flopped forwards. She wasn't crying, but she was close to it. She was shaking so badly, it was a wonder that the tree behind her hadn't eroded.

"I knew she'd die," she whispered softly, telling him that she knew his position. He dropped the invisibility genjutsu. "It was coming really. First Chiyo, the Jiraiya... It was a matter of time. But she seemed so..."

He didn't have to ask her to continue, he knew the feeling exactly.

"I suppose that brings Dobe one step closer to Hokage then." She shook her head.

"Kakashi. He doesn't want to, but it'll happen. Almost certainly." She smiled. "A nice bit of irony that after all these years, he's filling out Obito's dream."

"Obito?" That name sounded familiar.

"His old team mate." She explained. "The one who gave him the sharingan."

"Hn."

They waited in silence for several long minutes until Sasuke broke her out of her dream like state.

"I can't let you go back, you know." He pointed out.

"Figured."

"You're bait. For the Kyubi."

Her reaction was immediate and severe, sending Sasuke flying back several paces. Oh, if only she had more chakra. She'd make him eat his words...

"When is the time for a ninja to strike?" She whispered.

"Hn?"

"WHEN IS THE TIME FOR A NINJA TO STRIKE?" She all but screamed.

"S-Sakura?"

"You don't remember?" Her voice was bitter. "You really can't remember it..."

The tears were falling now. For so long. She had searched and searched _for so long._But he'd changed. As much as she and Naruto had. He was cold, uncaring, he didn't even remember.

"It's too bad your snake friend isn't here," she whispered, "he'd tell you."

What was she talking about? When is the time for a ninja to strike? How strange.

"I can't believe you joined them," she muttered, "those people...they're twisted. Just like your brother hn?"

"You don't know what you're taalking about!" He lost his composure, glaring at her. "These people! You've got no idea!"

"Of course I do!" She spat. "I've met them! I've fought against them! I've killed them!"

He stared at her. _She _had killed Akatsuki?

"Of course," he muttered, "that's why Orochimaru stopped me killing you. Sasori of the Red Sand right?"

She nodded, not trusting herself to talk.

His hands gripped her shoulders and he looked her in the eye.

"You've healed Kakashi's eyes." It wasn't a question. "You know about the damage the sharingan does to the vision. You can fix it."

She said nothing, the cold glare on her face spoke for her.

"Heal my eyes. I'll let you go."

She snorted.

"And why," she asked coolly, "would I do that?"

"Aw, come on _Sakura-chan._ You always wanted to spend more time with me." His smirk was clearly visible, even in the darkness.

"_Wanted._" She hissed Sasuke-kun. "I used to love you. I will _never_ love what you've become."

He stared at her, anger and suprise hidden behind cold black eyes.

"I see."

"If you hurt Naruto, so help me Kami, I'll kill you. If you invade Konoha, I'll kill you. If you so much as talk to me, at all, after I leave here, I can't be held responsible for my actions."

He didn't laugh. He knew she meant every word. And even if she couldn't kill him, he knew he would be unable to hurt her.

How ironic. Only a few years ago, she'd have killed to have him return her feelings. Now he envisioned a painful castration if he brought them up. She hadn't changed, he realised. She was still passionate and excitable and compassionate as always.

He had changed. He was different and it was in that instant that he realised how deep her love for him had ran. It wasn't physical at all. But he'd miraculously blown it. Completely.

"Sasuke! Have you found her?" Karins's voice pierced the night and he winced. Karin would tear Sakura apart for making them have to search for her.

"No, she's not here," he said, projecting his voice. Uchihas don't shout. "She must have doubled back."

Cursing, Karin ran in the other direction.

"Your chakra must be well hidden," he remarked, "she can usually sense it from a mile away. It's how we found you."

"I've got no chakra left to hide," she commented easily, "why did you lie?"

He paused, silent for a while.

"Go." She raised an eyebrow. "Just go Sakura, don't make this any harder than it is. There's an ANBU squad three miles directly north of here."

Nodding, she turned to leave.

As she sprinted off, he gasped. Of course!

"Sakura! Wait!"

She paused but didn't turn around.

"A ninja strikes when the time is right. When his enemy lies sleeping, their weapons forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is the time for a ninja to strike." He spoke quietly, but she caught every word.

"Ja ne...Sasuke-kun."

He couldn't see her face, but if he could he would see the small smile tugging at her lips and the tear that fell from her eye.

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Thanks for making it thus far. It dragged on longer than I intended it to. I haven't proof-read it yet, so if my typing skills are atrocious, please PM for the Beta position.

Ja ne,

Niamh.


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